Ball Toss Game and Method of Playing

ABSTRACT

A ball toss game and method of playing. The ball toss game comprises a circular game board and a plurality of container retaining components attached to the game board. The circular game board is segmented into a plurality of substantially equally sized pie shaped sections. A plurality of substantially sized containers are removably positional within each of the plurality of container retaining components. A center container, smaller than the plurality of substantially sized containers is removably positional within a center container retaining component. The method comprises a set of instructions for a game where users attempt to toss ping pong balls into the plurality of substantially sized containers and the center container.

CROSS-REFERENCE

This application claims priority from Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/816,165 filed on Mar. 10, 2019.

BACKGROUND

While at home, at parties, picnics, or other social events, individuals enjoy playing games. A favorite game of skill for many is the game of darts. Dart games can provide hours of entertainment and conversation among players. However, darts can be extremely dangerous due to the sharp edges and points of the projectiles. Darts can cause serious injuries to players and observers alike if not properly handled. Additionally, parents are often hesitant to let children play dart games.

Other similar non-projectile games involve tossing a ball, coin, or other object into a basket, cup, or other container. Beer Pong, also known as Beiruit, is a drinking game in which players toss ping pong balls across a table attempting to bounce the ball into a cup of beer or alcohol at the other end. The game typically consists of opposing teams with six to ten cups set up in a triangular formation, similar to a pool rack, on each side. If a player bounces a ball into a cup, the contents of the cup are consumed by the opposing team and the cup is removed from the table. The first team to eliminate all of the cups of the opposing team is the winner.

While this may be a fun game for some, it is certainly not child friendly. Additionally, there are many people that do not want to consume alcohol when playing games. While Beer Pong may be played with non-alcoholic beverages, there is still a high likelihood that liquids will be splashed out of the cups or otherwise spilled during the course of the game.

Accordingly, there is a great need for a uniquely designed game that mimics dart games that can be played by multiple players. The present invention provides a game that can provide hours of fun and conversation, that is fun, easy to play, and highly entertaining. The game is portable, allowing users to take it to parties, picnics, or other social gatherings. Advantageously, the present invention is much safer to play than traditional dart games.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the disclosed innovation. This summary is not an extensive overview, and it is not intended to identify key/critical elements or to delineate the scope thereof. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

The subject matter disclosed and claimed herein, in one aspect thereof, comprises a ball toss game. The ball toss game comprises a circular game board. The circular game board comprises a target surface side and a back side. The target surface side comprises a plurality of pie shaped sections. The ball toss game further comprises a plurality of container retaining elements. Each of the plurality of container retaining elements are attached to the target surface side of the circular game board. Each of the plurality of container retaining elements comprise a target surface attachment element and a retaining ring. The retaining ring is movably secured to the circular game board by the corresponding target surface attachment element. Each of the plurality of container retaining elements may further comprise a friction element attached to the corresponding retaining ring.

The ball toss game further comprises a plurality of containers. Each of the plurality of containers is removably retainable by the corresponding container retainer component. The corresponding friction element helps retain each of the plurality of containers within the corresponding retaining ring. Each of the plurality of containers is substantially identical in size and comprises an opening and a ball retaining portion.

The ball toss game further comprises a center container retaining component. The center container retaining component is attached to the target surface side of the circular game board. The center container retaining component comprises a center target surface attachment element and a center retaining ring. The center retaining ring is movably secured to the circular game board by the center target surface attachment element. The center container retaining component may further comprise a friction element similar to the friction elements of the plurality of container retaining components.

The ball toss game further comprises a center container. The center container is removably retainable by the center retaining ring of the center container retaining component. The friction element helps retain the center container within the center retaining ring. The center container is smaller in size than the plurality of containers and comprises an opening and a ball retaining portion.

The ball toss game further comprises a support component. The support component comprises a back attachment segment and a pair of legs. The back attachment segment is attachable to the back side of the circular game board. The pair of legs are movably attached to the back side attachment segment via a fastener that allows the pair of legs to hinge outward to support the ball toss game when placed on a horizontal surface.

The ball toss game may further comprise a wall mount component. The wall mount component comprises a back side attachment portion and a hanger. The back side attachment portion is attached to the back side of the circular game board. The hanger is movably attached to the back side attachment portion. The wall mount component further comprises a wall mount bracket for attaching to a vertical surface. The hanger is attachable to the wall mount bracket to hang the circular game board on a wall.

In an additional embodiment of the present invention a method for playing a ball toss game comprises providing a ball toss game and a plurality of balls for at least two players. Each of the players attempts to toss the plurality of balls into an opposing player's plurality of containers or a center container of the ball toss game. If a ball is successfully tossed into one of the opposing player's plurality of containers or the center container, one of the opposing player's plurality of containers is removed from a circular game board. If the ball is tossed into one of the player's plurality of containers, one of the opposing player's plurality of containers is replaced back on the circular game board. The method concludes when a ball is tossed by a player into the center container when all of the opposing player's plurality of containers have been removed from the circular game board.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, certain illustrative aspects of the disclosed innovation are described herein in connection with the following description and the annexed drawings. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles disclosed herein can be employed and is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Other advantages and novel features will become apparent from the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of a player using a ball toss game of the present invention in accordance with the disclosed architecture.

FIG. 2 illustrates a front view of the ball toss game of the present invention in accordance with the disclosed architecture.

FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of the ball toss game of the present invention in accordance with the disclosed architecture.

FIG. 4 illustrates a rear perspective view of the ball toss game supported by a stand component of the present invention in accordance with the disclosed architecture.

FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of the ball toss game hanging from a wall mount component of the present invention in accordance with the disclosed architecture.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flow chart of a method of playing a ball toss game of the present invention in accordance with the disclosed architecture.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The innovation is now described with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding thereof. It may be evident, however, that the innovation can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to facilitate a description thereof.

The present invention discloses a unique ping pong ball toss game designed for multiple players. The game features a plurality of cups placed on a circular game board. Players attempt to toss ping pong balls into the plurality of cups. The game is configured to be played on a table-top or may be hung on a wall to save space as desired. The game is usable by multiple players of all ages.

In one embodiment, the game board may include a circular playing surface divided into eight equal pie shapes of alternating colors that are numbered. The colors may correspond to an even or odd number. Each of the pie shapes have a ring to hold a removable cup with a middle bullseye holding a smaller removable cup. The playing surface may be set up on a table or hung on a wall. The game board may be available in a universal size with the exact size, measurement, construction, materials, and design specifications varying upon manufacturing.

A method of playing the game may include two players: and odd numbered player and an even numbered player. Each player may receive three ping pong balls each of different colors. During each player's turn, the ping pong balls may be shot or tossed into the corresponding cups. To win, all of the player's cups must be cleared from the board along with the center bullseye cup. The game may be played as a regular game or may be used as a drinking game.

Referring initially to FIG. 1, in one embodiment of the invention a ball toss game 100 for use with a plurality of balls 10 comprises a circular game board 102. The plurality of balls 10 are typically ping pong balls but may be any balls sized to be used with the ball toss game 100. The balls 10 may be of differing colors as desired to indicate belonging to a particular player. The circular game board 102 comprises a target surface side 104 and a back side 108. The circular game board 102 may be manufactured from wood, plastic, composite materials, or the like. Similarly, the dimensions of the circular game board 102 may vary depending on the dimensions or the other components of the ball toss game 100 as described infra.

The target surface side 104 comprises a plurality of pie shaped sections 106 of approximately equal dimension. In one embodiment, the target surface side 104 is bisected into eight approximately equally sized pie shaped sections. However, a different diameter target surface side could have more or less sections as desired. Each of the plurality of pie shaped sections 106 may have a numerical indicator 107, in this case, numbered one through eight. The plurality of pie shaped sections 106 may be alternating in color based on whether the numerical indicator 107 is an even or odd number. For example, each of the even numbered plurality of pie shaped sections 106 could have one color and the odd numbered plurality of pie shaped sections 106 could have a different color improving visibility for the players.

As further illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, the ball toss game 100 further comprises a plurality of container retaining components 110 and a plurality of containers 118. Each of the plurality of container retaining components 110 is attached to the target surface side 104 of the circular game board 102 in a generally circular orientation each within one of plurality of pie shaped sections 106. Each of the plurality of container retaining components 110 comprise a target surface attachment element 112 and a retaining ring 114.

Each target surface attachment element 112 is typically a mechanical fastener, such as a screw, hook, mechanical attachment point, or the like, used to movably attach the corresponding retaining ring 114 to the circular game board 102. Each retaining ring 114 is manufactured from wire, tubing, string, or other pliable material, and had a diameter large enough to accept and retain one of the plurality of containers 118. Each of the plurality of container retaining components 110 may further comprise a friction element 116. Each friction element 116 is manufactured from metal, plastic, or other material that can frictionally engage the corresponding container 118.

Each of the plurality of containers 118 comprise an opening 120 and a ball retaining portion 122. Additionally, each of the plurality of containers 118 is substantially identical in size with the opening 120 being large enough to accept a ping pong ball 10. Each of the plurality of containers 118 is retainable by one of the corresponding container components 110. Each container 118 may be a cup, such as a plastic Solo® cup, a plastic drinking cup, or the like.

Prior to accepting one of the plurality of containers 118, each retaining ring 114 can lie substantially flat against the target side surface 104 of the circular game board 102. When the container 118 is placed within the retaining ring 114, the retaining ring 114 hinges outward away from the target side surface 104 substantially perpendicularly to retain the container 118 within the container retaining component 110. The friction element 116 helps to hold the container 118 in position within the retaining ring 114.

The ball toss game 100 further comprises a center container retaining component 124 and a center container 132. The center container retaining component 124 comprises a center target surface attachment element (not shown, but similar in configuration and construction to 112), and a center retaining ring 128. The center target surface attachment element is typically a mechanical fastener, such as a screw, hook, mechanical attachment point, or the like, used to movably attach the corresponding retaining ring 114 to the circular game board 102.

The center container retaining component 124 is attached to the target surface side 104 of the circular game board 102 at the center intersection of each of the plurality of pie shaped sections 106 similar to a “bullseye” location on a dart board. The center retaining ring 128 is typically manufactured from wire, tubing, string, or other pliable material, and had a diameter large enough to accept and retain the center container 132. The center container retaining component 124 may further comprise a friction element 130 typically manufactured from metal, plastic, or other material that can frictionally engage the center container 132.

The center container 132 comprises an opening 134 and a ball retaining portion 136. Additionally, the opening 134 of the center container 132 is large enough to accept a ping pong ball 10 but is smaller than the opening 120 of each of the plurality of containers 118. The center container 132 is retainable by center container retaining component 124. The center container 132 is typically a smaller cup, such as a plastic Solo® cup, a plastic drinking cup, or the like. The center container 132 is smaller than each of the plurality of containers 118. For example, if the plurality of containers 118 are 16 oz cups, the center container may be a 4 oz cup.

Prior to accepting the center container 132, the center retaining ring 128 can lie substantially flat against the target side surface 104 of the circular game board 102. When the center container 132 is placed within the center retaining ring 128, the center retaining ring 128 hinges outward away from the target side surface 104 substantially perpendicularly to retain the center container 132 within the center container retaining component 124. The friction element 130 helps to hold the center container 132 in position within the center retaining ring 128.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the ball toss game 100 further comprises a support component 138. The support component 138 is movably attached to the back side 108 of the circular game board 102. The support component 138 comprises a back side attachment segment 140 and a pair of legs 142. The pair of legs 142 are movably attached to the back side attachment segment 140 by a fastener 146. The pair of legs 142 are connected by a brace 144 for stability. When the support component 138 is deployed to support the circular game board 102, the pair of legs 142 hinge outward in an easel like configuration to support the ball toss game 100 when placed on a horizontal surface.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the ball toss game 100 may further comprise a wall mount component 148. The wall mount component 148 is attached to the back side 108 of the circular game board 102. The wall mount component 148 comprises a back side attachment portion 150 and a hanger 152. The back side attachment portion 150 is typically a mechanical fastener, such as a screw, hook, mechanical attachment point, or the like. The hanger 152 is movably attached to the back side attachment portion 150. The hanger 152 is typically a wire, string, or the like that is attachable to the back side attachment portion 150. The wall mount component 148 further comprises a wall mount bracket 154 for attaching to a vertical surface. The wall mount bracket 154 is typically a bracket, hook, or similar hardware that is attachable to the vertical surface. The hanger 152 is attachable to the wall mount bracket 154 to hang the circular game board 102 on a wall.

FIG. 6 illustrated a flow chart of a method 200 of playing the ball toss game 100 described supra. The method 200 comprises providing a ball toss game 100 for a player and an opponent at 210. The player selects either odd or even numbers for his numerical indicators 107. At 220, the player attempts to toss a ping pong ball 10 into one of the opponent's plurality of containers 118 or the center container 132 of the ball toss game 100. If the toss is successfully placed into one of the opponent's plurality of containers 118, the player removes the container 118 with the retained ping pong ball 10 from the corresponding container retaining component 110 at 230. If the toss is successfully placed into the center container 132, the player chooses one of the opponent's containers 118 to remove. At 240, if the toss inadvertently lands in one of the player's containers 118, the player must replace one of the opponent's containers 118 back into one of the opponent's container retaining components 110 if any are available.

Similarly, the opponent repeats the process by attempting to toss a ping pong ball 10 into one of the player's plurality of containers 118, or the center container 132. If the toss is successfully placed into one of the player's plurality of containers 118, the opponent removes the container 118 with the retained ping pong ball 10 from the corresponding container retaining component 110. If the toss is successfully placed into the center container 132, the opponent chooses one of the player's containers 118 to remove. If the toss inadvertently lands in one of the opponent's containers 118, the opponent must replace one of the player's containers 118 back into one of the player's container retaining components 110 if any are available.

Once all of the opponent's containers 118 have been removed, the player attempts to toss the ping pong ball 10 into the center container 132 at 250. Similarly, once all of the player's containers 118 have been removed, the opponent attempts to toss the ping pong ball 10 into the center container 132. The game ends at 260 when either the player or the opponent successfully tosses the ping pong ball 10 into the center container 132 when all of the player's or opponent's containers 118 respectively have been removed.

What has been described above includes examples of the claimed subject matter. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes of describing the claimed subject matter, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize that many further combinations and permutations of the claimed subject matter are possible. Accordingly, the claimed subject matter is intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the term “includes” is used in either the detailed description or the claims, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as “comprising” is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A ball toss game comprising: a circular game board comprising a target surface side; a plurality of container retaining components attached to the target surface side; and a plurality of containers retainable by the plurality of container retaining components.
 2. The ball toss game of claim 1, wherein the target side surface is divided into a plurality of pie shaped sections.
 3. The ball toss game of claim 1, wherein the target side surface is divided into eight pie shaped sections.
 4. The ball toss game of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of container retaining components comprise a retaining ring.
 5. The ball toss game of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of container retaining components comprise a friction element.
 6. The ball toss game of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of containers are substantially identical in size.
 7. The ball toss game of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of containers is a cup.
 8. The ball toss game of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of containers comprise an opening large enough to accept a ping pong ball.
 9. The ball toss game of claim 1 further comprising a support component attached to a back side of the circular game board.
 10. The ball toss game of claim 9, wherein the support component comprises a back side attachment segment and a pair of legs movably attached to the back side attachment segment.
 11. The ball toss game of claim 1 further comprising a wall mount component attached to a back side of the circular game board.
 12. The ball toss game of claim 1 further comprising a center container retaining component attached to the target surface side.
 13. The ball toss game of claim 12 further comprising a center container retainable by the center container retaining component.
 14. A ball toss game comprising: a circular game board comprising a target surface side divided into a plurality of pie shaped sections; a plurality of container retaining components attached to the target surface side; a plurality of containers retainable by the plurality of container retaining components; a center container retaining component attached to the target surface side; and a center container retainable by the center container retaining component.
 15. The ball toss game of claim 14 further comprising a support component attached to a back side of the circular game board.
 16. The ball toss game of claim 14 further comprising a wall mount component attached to a back side of the circular game board.
 17. The ball toss game of claim 14, wherein each of the plurality of containers are substantially identically sized.
 18. The ball toss game of claim 17, wherein the center container is smaller than each of the plurality of containers.
 19. The ball toss game of claim 14, wherein the center container retaining component comprises a center retaining ring and a friction portion.
 20. A method of playing a ball toss game comprising: providing the ball toss game for a player and an opponent; attempting to toss a ball into one of an opponent's plurality of containers or a center container of the ball toss game; removing one of the opponent's plurality of containers from a circular game board if the ball is tossed within; replacing one of the opponent's plurality of containers if the ball is tossed within one of a player's plurality of containers; and attempting to toss the ball into the center container after all of the opponent's plurality of containers have been removed from the circular game board. 